After making history by becoming the first Egyptian film to win the Jury Prize for Best Film in Post-Production at the Venice Film Festival's Final Cut, Morad Mostafa’s tense African migrant drama AISHA CAN’T FLY AWAY has been awarded the prestigious Atlas Award for Best Film in Post-Production at the 21st Marrakech International Film Festival's Atlas Workshops — an accolade that comes with a $25,000 sum dedicated to post-production efforts.
 
The award was presented in the presence of this year's Atlas Workshops patron, acclaimed American filmmaker Jeff Nicholas. The festival featured exclusive screenings of ten-minute extracts from nine films in production or post-production, providing a glimpse into the vibrant talent emerging from the region.
 
AISHA CAN’T FLY AWAY follows the story of Aisha — a 26-year-old African immigrant caregiver residing in Ain-shams, a Cairo neighborhood with a large African migrant community. Through her eyes, the film explores the intricate dynamics of a world where the authorities’ indifference to the violent tensions between Egyptians and various African nationalities has allowed organized gangs to seize control. The situation quickly turns sour after one of them offers Aisha security in exchange for a favor.
 
In addition to the Jury Prize at Final Cut in Venice, the film won four other awards at Venice’s side bar as well and received funding and support from the Red Sea Lodge, Doha Film Institute, AFAC Film Fund, Cultural Resource (Mawred), Cinéfondation, La Fabrique Cinema of Cannes, Cinemed Montpellier, Locarno Academy, and El Gouna Film Festival.
 
Produced through Yusuf’s Bonanza Films, the film is a co-production involving Egypt’s Film Clinic (Mohamed Hefzy), which is also handling the film's MENA-wide sales and distribution in partnership with MAD Distribution; Tunisia’s Nomadis Images (Dora Bouchoucha); Egypt’s MAD Solutions (Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab) — which is also handling international sales and distribution through its subsidiary MAD World — Lagoonie Film Production (Shahinaz El Akkad); Odeh Films (May Odeh); and Sudan’s Station Films (Amjad Abu Alala and Mohammed Alomda).
 
The creative team behind AISHA CAN’T FLY AWAY includes cinematographer Mostafa El Kashef, who also worked on Morad Mostafa’s I PROMISE YOU PARADISE along with this year’s Cannes entry THE VILLAGE NEXT TO PARADISE, which also made its way to Toronto; art director Eman Elelaby, who earned a FIPRESCI Prize for her work on FEATHERS; costume designer Nayera Eldahshoury; and editor Mohamed Mamdouh.
 
AISHA CAN’T FLY AWAY also boasts a stellar cast, with Buliana Simon taking on the lead role of Aisha alongside Egyptian rapper Ziad Zaza in his first outing in a feature-length project, Emad Ghoniem, and Mamdouh Saleh.
 
Morad Mostafa has an impressive repertoire of experience under his belt; working on several independent films, including Aytin Amin’s SOUAD — serving as a first assistant director — which was an official selection of both the Cannes and Berlin international film festivals.
 
An alumnus of Berlinale Talents, Durban Talents, and Locarno Academy, Mostafa wrote and directed three short films, all of which were selected in Clermont-Ferrand over three consecutive years and were screened in more than 300 festivals worldwide, winning several awards. His latest short film, I PROMISE YOU PARADISE, was selected for the 2023 edition of Cannes’ Critics Week and the César Awards.